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Cultivating the field of systems change practice

Illuminate is a collaborative network designed to connect people committed to cultivating the field and practice of systems change towards a just, equitable and regenerative future for all.

In June 2018, we co-convened an event on Wasan Island, Canada, bringing together practitioners, academics, funders to explore together how we might work together to build the field of systems change, a summary of the pathways to field building can be found in the convening report.

Download the full write-up of the retreat

Since then the School has been part of the Stewardship group supporting the start up of the initiative Illuminate take shape as well as supporting specific projects such as Visualizing the field (link to that page) as well as working with Tatiana Fraser and Rachel Sinha from System Sanctuary to kick off the learning node, to support the weaving of insights from the different activities and support the stewardship group with the overall strategy. 

The current field of practice provides valuable frameworks, processes and tools to help guide and deepen the transformations that are needed.  However much of this work is disconnected and making it hard to access, it is also currently growing from a predominantly white, western and academic culture.  Illuminate and its member organisations know that there are different systems change practice scattered globally and as the field grows we want to support the centering of the emergence of the field globally with equity and justice at its core. 

Who has been involved so far?

  • The Academy for Systems Change
  • The School of System Change
  • The Systems Sanctuary
  • CoCreative
  • Institute for Strategic Clarity
  • LankellyChase Foundation
  • The Mastercard Foundation
  • Garfield Foundation
  • McConnell Foundation
  • The Omidyar Group
  • Turtle Island Institute
  • Pisces Foundation

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